Hott XXX Bunz!!!
I made a pilgrimage to the Edinburgh Farmers Market this morn and my eyes fell upon a most holy vision of loveliness. A giant, fragrant pyramid of fresh baked hot cross buns.
Only yesterday I'd received an email from Tesco offering me a free six-pack of their Finest Hot Cross Buns with my next order as thanks for my loyal custom. I know I'm supposed to trot around to local providores and cheesemongers in search of groceries, but I live out of town so we get a weekly delivery from the evil global conglomerate.
So I was going to add these Free Bunz to my shopping list tomorrow, but then I saw these lovely fresh ones in Edinburgh today, just 50p each. That's 50p more and five less than the free 6-pack, but that's when I had to ask myself, Do I need six free hot cross buns?
My mother used to have one of those flippy calendars beside the telephone, you know those Day To A Page ones with a daily quote from Confucious, Winston Churchill or some other approachable smart person. I was about ten years old when I read this quote:
Cheap is dear, because it tempts us to buy what we need not.
I can't remember who said it, but I do remember filing it away in my insufferable ten-year-old memory. On our next trip to the supermarket, I trailed behind my mother waiting for my moment. As soon as she started scavenging through the reduced-price yogurts and discounted mince, I intoned sagely and smart-arsedly, "Cheap is dear, Mother; because it tempts us to buy what we need not."
Pre-teen smugness aside, it's good advice in terms of weight loss. Six free hot cross buns may sound like a good deal on paper, but one good quality 50p hot cross bun, savoured slowly with a smidge of butter and a cup of tea, is much better for the size of my arse.
Happy Easter, groovers!
Comments
I've been thinking about this a lot lately: I like the idea of a cup of tea and a cookie or two, eaten on a lace-covered table, naturally, with golden sunlight in the background and a string quartet playing Vivaldi in the background. Unfortunately, one bad day and I end up standing in the kitchen, eating the entire box of cookies by the light of the fridge. Trying to be a gourmet and savoring food may be something I have to postpone til maintenance; right now, keeping the house "goodie-free" may be the proper route. Which depresses me. And embarrasses me -- don't trust this woman with a cookie! No conclusions here, just thx for the post...it's going in the stewpot of my brain while I try to figure this one out...and thx for the XXX giggles.
1 · Posted by babs on April 8, 2006 10:48 PM
no worries babs! and i tend to agree with you there. sometimes methinks cold turkey is the only way to go. otherwise i wouldn't be dreaming of moooooorrrreee XXX buns right now! :D
2 · Posted by shauna on April 8, 2006 11:01 PM
oh i agree completely. i just wish i could follow suit when i see the ritter sport chocolate bars 2 for $5 at harris farm markets. the bun looks super. i plan on making a batch this week... my first ever time making these hot buns! oh baby!
3 · Posted by saffron on April 9, 2006 3:48 AM
Hey Shauna, is the hot cross bun similar to the ones in Australia? It looks to me more like multigrain roll with a cross on it. Does it have dried fruit in it? Have chocolate chip hot cross buns reared their ugly heads in Scotland? They have been available in Melbourne for the past few Easters in Brumby's and unfortunately now other bakeries are following suit - they are hideous. I am the biggest chocohlic in the world but I think they are terrible. Love your blogs!
4 · Posted by Tracey on April 9, 2006 4:45 AM
hi tracey! it does look kinda wholemealy on top but it was just a normal bun with the spices and peel etc etc... it was bloody beautiful too! nice and soft... ahhh. why didn't i get two? :P
5 · Posted by shauna on April 9, 2006 11:41 AM
That Hot X bun looks more like the ones I remember from my youth. The ones in USA only had white icing crosses which meant if you wanted to warm them up in the oven or the microwave the icing melted, so you had to take (or lick) it off first. I didn't see any here last year but then I was not looking for them. I've made them before so I could make the dough next Thursday, ready to bake them Friday morning.
A pox on marketing!! May their letter boxes be always full of their own advertising waste paper!!
Buying groceries with cash & having a shopping list, keeps me from buying things that I don't need. I find it mortifying to have to hand something back when I don't have enough 'sularaha' (cash).
And you only bought 1 bun, because it was a reward for something you had achieved this week. And you still need to be good & kind to yourself. Keep your chin up!
6 · Posted by Pene on April 9, 2006 12:24 PM
I love that quote! I'm commiting it memory to apply to my love for bargains and excess which leads to overspending and overeating alike. This one is going on my fridge and possibly in my wallet. Thanks for sharing!
7 · Posted by Jen on April 10, 2006 2:09 PM
Just had to pop by to wish you HAPPY EASTER!! May your days be merry and egg-white!
Also, your post Eating in the Modern Age was very inspriring and made me think about my own "rules" regarding eating. I´ve started to write a comment a million times but was never able to finish it, such a complicated issue. Anyway, I´ll ponder the subject and prolly get back to you later. Just had to let you know that the post gave an interesting boost for my food thoughts... And I love it. :-)
THANK you, Gingy, my perky blogger friend
PS. Spring is finally reaching our northern peripheric area [Finland]!! WOOHOOO!
8 · Posted by Meri on April 10, 2006 8:13 PM
That's a beautiful looking hot cross bun, it's huge!
Was the cross the weird non-tanning blonde dough stuff or was it made of marzipan? Either way it looks good.
"I like the idea of a cup of tea and a cookie or two, eaten on a lace-covered table, naturally, with golden sunlight in the background and a string quartet playing Vivaldi in the background. Unfortunately, one bad day and I end up standing in the kitchen, eating the entire box of cookies by the light of the fridge" (babs)
What do you mean one bad day? Every day!
Enjoying the blog a lot . . .
9 · Posted by amyjames on April 18, 2006 6:29 PM
Oh dear. All I could think about when I saw this, was how many hits you're going to get because of the "XXX". Add the words hot, soft, buns, huge, oh baby, etc... did I see the word "lick" in the comments up there? Oh brother. hehe
10 · Posted by Donna on April 25, 2006 5:02 AM
Wow, Your blog is awesome. TaraX
11 · Posted by Tarax on April 27, 2006 10:03 AM